Asked before you had to ask.
Everything clients ask about the build, the platform, and what happens after launch. If your question is not here, email me and I answer.
You own the site outright
Every price is published
Month-to-month after the minimum
I do the work myself
Everything else below, in plain language.
How it is built
What do you build the site on?
WordPress, with a theme I build myself. Not a marketplace template and not a drag-and-drop builder. That combination is what lets me hand you a site you can edit without handing you one that looks like everybody else's.
My site is on Squarespace. Can you just work inside that?
No. Squarespace is fine for a brochure, but it limits the technical SEO, the page structure, and the custom tools your build depends on, and you never stop renting it. I rebuild on WordPress and point your domain at the new site. Your old site stays up until the new one is ready, so nothing goes dark.
What about Wix, GoDaddy, or Weebly?
Same answer, same reasons. I will move your content and your page URLs over so you keep the search history you have already built.
Do you use Elementor, Divi, or another page builder?
No. Page builders make a site slower, harder for anyone else to work on, and impossible to move without a rebuild. I use WordPress's own block editor, which is faster, cleaner, and does not lock you to a plugin you have to keep paying for.
Is it a template?
No. I build from a system of components I have refined across builds, which is how the price stays at $5,000. What goes inside them, the structure, the copy, the design decisions, is built for your business and your competitors.
I already have a WordPress site. Do you start from scratch?
I rebuild the front of it, which is the part that is not working. Your content, your pages, your URLs, and often your hosting can all carry over. You are not starting from zero and you are not losing your search history.
Hosting and domains
Where does the site actually live?
In a hosting account in your name, on your card. Not mine. That is deliberate. It means the site is genuinely yours and nothing I do or stop doing can take it offline.
Can I stay with my current host?
I will build there if you want. But the included year of care only applies on a managed WordPress host from my approved list, because that is where the daily backups and malware cleanup come from. I check your host before we start and tell you straight which side of that line it falls on.
What does hosting cost?
Between nothing and about $30 a month depending on who you use and how much traffic you get, paid to the host, not to me. If you do not have a host I will recommend one and set it up in your name.
Will you host it for me?
No, and that is on purpose. When an agency hosts your site, leaving them means losing it. I would rather you stay because the work is good.
Who owns the domain?
You do. If you do not have one yet I register it in your name, and the fee, usually twelve to twenty dollars a year, is yours. I never hold a client's domain.
Editing it yourself
Can I update the site myself after it launches?
Yes. Text, photos, hours, phone numbers, service descriptions, staff. You log in and change it. No ticket, no invoice, no waiting on me.
Can I add a new page or write a blog post?
Yes. You build new pages from the same sections I used on the rest of the site, so a page you add still looks like a page I built.
What if I break something?
It is hard to. The layouts are locked, so you can change what a section says without being able to take the design apart. And there are daily backups, so if something does go sideways I put it back.
Do I need to know anything technical?
No. If you can use email you can change a headline. I walk you through it at handoff and leave you a short video for the three things you will actually do.
What if I do not want to touch it at all?
Then do not. The growth retainer exists for owners who would rather hand it off entirely. Either way the site is yours and the option stays open.
What you own
Do I actually own the site?
Yes, outright, once the final payment clears. The design, the pages, the copy I wrote, and the files. You can take it anywhere.
What happens if we stop working together?
Nothing happens to your site. It is on your hosting account, on your domain, with your login. I hand over anything you do not already have and get out of the way.
Could another developer take it over?
Yes. It is standard WordPress with a custom theme, which is the most common setup on the internet. Any competent developer can pick it up without a rebuild. That is a large part of why I build this way.
Are there licenses or subscriptions I have to keep paying you for?
No. No theme license, no builder subscription, no proprietary platform fee. Your only ongoing costs are your domain and your hosting, both paid directly to those vendors.
Updates and backups
Who keeps the site updated after launch?
I do, for the first twelve months, included in the build. WordPress core, theme, and plugin updates, plus I watch that the site is up. After that you can continue on a care plan, hand it to anyone you like, or run it yourself.
What does the first year of care not cover?
Changing your content, adding pages, adding features, design changes, and SEO or marketing work. Care keeps the machinery running. Changing what the site says is either yours to do or the retainer's. I say it plainly so nobody is surprised in month four.
Is the site backed up?
Yes, daily, by your host. That is part of why I put you on a managed WordPress host rather than the cheapest one available. If an update or an edit breaks something, I roll it back from that day's backup.
What if the site gets hacked?
Your host cleans it up, included in what you already pay them, and I get you back to normal. It is a real risk on any website and pretending otherwise would be dishonest, so I build lean to reduce the exposure and I put you somewhere that handles it if it happens.
Does the care year apply if I stay on my current host?
Only if your host is on my approved list. Care depends on daily backups and malware cleanup that managed WordPress hosts include and cheap hosts do not. I will still build your site anywhere you want. I just will not promise to look after something running on infrastructure I cannot rely on, and I tell you that before you decide rather than after.
When does the care year start?
The day your site goes live, not the day you paid. If the build takes longer than expected, your care year does not get shorter for it.
Search and performance
Will the site be fast?
Yes, and that is not a small thing. Most small business sites are slow because they are stacked with plugins and builder code. Mine are not, which is why they load quickly on a phone on a bad connection, which is where most of your customers are.
What SEO is actually included in the build?
The foundation. Page structure and metadata, schema markup so search engines understand what you do and where you do it, your Google Business Profile aligned to the site, clean URLs, and a site fast enough to compete. Ongoing content and link work is what the retainer is for.
Will I rank number one on Google?
I do not promise rankings and you should be skeptical of anyone who does. What I control is the technical foundation, the structure, and whether people who land on your site call you. Those I deliver.
Will I lose my current rankings when the new site goes live?
Not if it is done properly. I map your existing pages to the new ones and redirect the old URLs, so the history you have built carries over. This is the step most cheap rebuilds skip and it is the reason people lose traffic after a redesign.
What is included
Can you connect my booking or scheduling software?
I integrate the platforms you already use, or the ones I recommend, so booking, reviews, and lead capture work from day one. A tool built from scratch for your business is an add-on, from $2,500.
Can you build me an online store?
Not inside the $5,000 build. Selling online changes the scope enough that it deserves its own conversation and its own number. Tell me at the start and I will quote it honestly rather than bolting it on.
How many pages do I get?
Up to ten, written by me in your voice. For most local businesses that covers the home page, your services, your service area, about, and contact with room left over.
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